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Adrian Quaife-Hobbs tops wet Silverstone GP3 practice

Valencia winner Adrian Quaife-Hobbs kept his momentum rolling by topping a rain-affected first GP3 free practice session at Silverstone on Friday lunchtime

Although the session started with a dry track, a rain shower swept across the circuit on the opening lap, setting the tone for a disrupted half-hour of tricky conditions. Lewis Williamson set the early pace, before being bettered by fellow Briton James Calado, then Antonio Felix da Costa and Rio Haryanto.

With half the session gone, Calado was fastest at the second split but then put all four wheels on the grasscrete exiting Stowe and spun back across the track, clattering the tyre wall like Guido van der Garde had done in GP2 half an hour earlier. This promoted a long yellow flag while car was being recovered.

After the yellow flag was withdrawn, the rain started again, but Valtteri Bottas, Alexander Sims and Haryanto all squeezed in good laps in the brief weather window, taking it in turns to top the times.

A heavier rain shower with six minutes remaining sent many cars scurrying back to the pits, including Haryanto, but those who stayed out were rewarded with the best track conditions right at the end.

Williamson briefly grabbed top spot again, before Quaife-Hobbs beat him by 0.378 seconds, which no one else could outdo. Haryanto stayed third, just ahead of Gabby Chaves, Mitch Evans, Bottas, Dean Smith and Sims.

Pos  Driver                  Team       Time       Gap
 1.  Adrian Quaife-Hobbs     Manor      1m52.066s
 2.  Lewis Williamson        MW Arden   1m52.444s  + 0.378s
 3.  Rio Haryanto            Manor      1m52.915s  + 0.849s
 4.  Gabby Chaves            Addax      1m52.991s  + 0.925s
 5.  Mitch Evans             MW Arden   1m53.000s  + 0.934s
 6.  Valtteri Bottas         ART        1m53.262s  + 1.196s
 7.  Dean Smith              Addax      1m53.288s  + 1.222s
 8.  Alexander Sims          Status     1m53.357s  + 1.291s
 9.  Tom Dillmann            Addax      1m53.577s  + 1.511s
10.  Michael Christensen     RSC Mucke  1m53.638s  + 1.572s
11.  Luciano Bacheta         RSC Mucke  1m53.717s  + 1.651s
12.  Nico Muller             Jenzer     1m53.792s  + 1.726s
13.  Marlon Stockinger       Atech CRS  1m53.895s  + 1.829s
14.  Aaro Vainio             Tech 1     1m53.934s  + 1.868s
15.  Antonio Felix da Costa  Status     1m53.988s  + 1.922s
16.  Daniel Morad            Carlin     1m54.000s  + 1.934s
17.  Nigel Melker            RSC Mucke  1m54.038s  + 1.972s
18.  Tamas Pal Kiss          Tech 1     1m54.093s  + 2.027s
19.  Conor Daly              Carlin     1m54.114s  + 2.048s
20.  Nick Yelloly            Atech CRS  1m54.185s  + 2.119s
21.  Simon Trummer           MW Arden   1m54.243s  + 2.177s
22.  Pedro Nunes             ART        1m54.700s  + 2.634s
23.  Vittorio Ghirelli       Jenzer     1m54.785s  + 2.719s
24.  Maxim Zimin             Jenzer     1m54.796s  + 2.730s
25.  Zoel Amberg             Atech CRS  1m54.854s  + 2.788s
26.  Ivan Lukashevich        Status     1m54.999s  + 2.933s
27.  Matias Laine            Manor      1m55.258s  + 3.192s
28.  James Calado            ART        1m55.308s  + 3.242s
29.  Leonardo Cordeiro       Carlin     1m56.229s  + 4.163s
30.  Thomas Hylkema          Tech 1     1m56.912s  + 4.846s

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